Western Bulldogs tall Josh Bruce could be headed back to where his career started after trialling in defence this pre-season, reports AFL Media’s Josh Gabelich.
While Bruce has made a name for himself in the forward line – kicking 234 goals from 155 games – he initially cut his teeth in the backline with GWS in 2012 and 2013.
Gabelich expects Bruce’s experience as a defender will have his name in calculations to play in that role early in the season as coach Luke Beveridge has a range of options to pick from.
“I think it’s going to be one of the good talking points heading into Round 1, what they do down back,” Gabelich told SEN Mornings.
“They went and got Liam Jones as a free agent, Alex Keath was in and out of the team at the end of the year, Ryan Gardner is a lock and Josh Bruce was trialling in defence.
“He’s gone back to where he started his AFL career.”
Another player that could have a role down back is young tall Sam Darcy, who also reportedly featured in defence in Friday's intra-club match.
After playing four impressive games in his debut season, Gabelich is interested to see whether Darcy plays down back or up forward in his second year in the system.
“It’s interesting to see what they do with Sam Darcy,” Gabelich said.
“He spent a little bit of time forward in Round 23 and in that final against Freo, so it’s interesting to see what they do.
“They’ve got some real depth at either end ... their key posts at either end are really imposing.”
The Bulldogs kick off their campaign with a Round 1 clash against Melbourne at the MCG on March 18.